Terrorism and your Future Trip

Do not let the "threat " of terrorism ruin your upcoming trip to France, especially to the rich capital of Paris. Really there is nothing to be afraid of, I continue my day without even thinking twice about the threat. Yes, it ok to be cautionary, especially where there are lots of people, because it would be easy that someone could "leave" something behind. But again, there are plenty of people around that someone would notice it and bring it to the attention of the RATP.

Also, places like Les Champs-Elysées or the Eiffel Tower and all the airports they have bumped up security, making you feel safe when there are 20 guys with machine-guns around.

My point to this entry is not to be afraid, or freak out that a terrorist is going to ruin your vacation. Just be careful, note your surroundings; if you see a package or suitcase with no one around tell someone. I mean it is not worth it to spend your whole trip freaking out, it is better to take in the sights.

 You only get to live once and that might mean you only get to visit Paris once.

From the French Kitchen to yours 1

As requested by Kirsten Watters from Texas! :)

I found all sorts of recipes for Curry Chicken, and I am going to share two. The first is a creamy version and the second will really bring the spice. Enjoy and then share which one you liked better!!

Creamy Chicken Curry with Lemon Rice   serves 4

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast; cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 large onion, grated
• 2 fresh green chiles, finely chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves; grated
• 2 tsp ginger
• 1tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 10 fl oz. coconut milk
• 9 fl oz. canned chopped tomatoes
• 2 tsp. lemon juice
• salt
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

 Rice

• 1 3/4 cups basmati rice, rinsed
• 5 cups water
• juiced and grated rind of 1 lemon

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottom pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 5-8 minutes, turning frequently, until lightly browned and cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add the cumin seeds and cook until they start to darken and sizzle. Stir in the onion, partially cover, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes, or until soft and golden. Add the chiles, garlic, ginger, turmeric, ground coriander and cook for 1 minute
2. Return the chicken to the pan and stir in the coconut milk and tomatoes. Partially cover and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Stir in the lemon juice and season with salt.
3. Meanwhile cook the rice. Put the rice into a pan and cover with the water. Add the lemon juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and let simmer over very low heat for 15 minutes, or until the rice is tender and all the water has been absorbed. Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the lemon rind. Let the rice stand, covered for 5 minutes.
4. Serve the curry with the lemon rice, sprinkled with fresh cilantro.

Carrefour - The Walmart of Europe

It is true, they really do exist! There are the mega stores and the market versions, it’s like Walmart finally had an influence on the French supermarket!

The store that I frequent the most is Rosny 2 ( a mall in Rosny Sous Bois, 93000).

It is so big that there are 3 levels. The first is dedicated to rows and rows of every kind of food imaginable, a representation of every culture – peanut butter, Chinese, Mexican, etc. The second and third are like the home/garden/entertainment  section of Walmart, there is everything that one would ever want, and it is hard to walk out emptied handed.

There are cool escalators, basically like moving sidewalks that go up hills with a slip-proof floor, that way no one looses or accidently ( or on purpose) lets their cart go. Plus, one thing that Walmarts in the US mare missing arte the rollerblades. Employees go skating around the store to be extra efficient especially when there is a price check.

The one thing that I miss are the “ lower prices everyday,” often the prices are the same as supermarket stores that sell the same home products or food. But one thing stays the same is the people. There literally needs to be a people of Carrefour, you think Americans dress interestingly, it’s a whole other world across the ocean!

What are your thoughts on Carrefour? Have you ever visited one?

Freebox and Client Relations

It has been three months since we moved and I decided it was time to get our internet changed over into our name (before it was in my brother-in-law's). I had his box closed, and I started the moving process on ours.
First let me explain what the Freebox is. It is a telephone, internet, and tv service in one for the low price of 29,99 euros per month. International calling is free to all landlines, so Y can call Turkey for free and I can call the states, it is wonderful. Plus we have all kinds of TV stations, there are like 10 turk channels; and the english ones are only the news stations, but that's what internet is for. It sounds good right?

Well when you decide to move, it isn't that appealing. September 1 passed and I plugged in our boxes and applied online to finish the moving process. Well there was a box that said it wasn't possible. So I called their service relations number and tried to talk to someone about it. I explained the situation about applying online and the guy was like "Madame there is no phone line, therefore you must call French Telecom!" Yeah they blamed it on the other guys, I called France Telecom and explained the situation and they were like no its Freebox who has to fix the line. I called back to explain it to the service people and it was the same man and he put me on 'hold' and never came back.

And calling the service people is not cheap, its 0,34 cents a minute that they apply directly to your bill! And of course you are on hold for more than 10 minutes! Ridiculous!

So I called back another day, explained the situation again and the woman told me that I clicked on the wrong button. I clicked a button that asked if we wanted to keep the old number, so I clicked on it and I didn't know it was wrong. I called her a bad word - because in France you have to get forceful with them in order for them to change their mind! I preceded to tell her that they shouldn't offer moving services online if people are always clicking the wrong button. She was like "well its your fault not mine, I didn't force you to click it". And then she said call back tomorrow.

So I did just that I called back the next day, and played a little stupid even though I had all the information in front of me on how they could fix it. The guy was super nice, he understood that I didn't speak French very well and made an effort to make sure he got the information right. He said Freebox would pay to open a new phone line and take care of everything! Wow! I was nice and didn't have to cuss at him in order to get my way!

Remember:

• Raising your voice isn't always a bad thing, just make sure your French is good
• Always have the information available so you can say "haha you're lying"
• Never play dumb, because the French will just walk all over you!

Now I will have internet to post adventures and information about visiting, living in Paris.


Share if you have stories similar to this! Doesn't have to be only Freebox!

I have not forgot about you!

New posts coming soon!!! I have not forgot about my adventures. Next post will explain the delay - internet service relations - are just as crazy no matter what country you are in!